
January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month. At Designed For Joy, we are deeply committed to supporting survivors of human trafficking through meaningful employment, compassion, and collaboration. We partner with incredible organizations in Raleigh, NC, that share our mission of fighting human trafficking and supporting survivors, including Shield NC, One More Child, and Salvation Army Project FIGHT.
Additionally, we are honored to work alongside national leaders through The Jensen Project, a network of anti-trafficking organizations. Their generous grants have empowered us to expand our mission and make a lasting difference.
So, what is human trafficking, really, and who is vulnerable? What does human trafficking actually look like and how can I help?
What is human trafficking?
Human trafficking, also called commercial sexual exploitation, is any sexual activity that is traded for something valuable. The sexual activity can be street level prostitution, but also includes escorting, pornography, stripping/exotic dancing, and exotic massage.
While the movies and mainstream media has led us to believe men in white vans abduct women from Target or put plastic water bottles near their tires as signals in a parking lot, most human trafficking looks vastly different.
Human trafficking involves psychological manipulation over time, or threats of violence, often by people the victim knows. Traffickers exploit vulnerabilities such as food or housing insecurity, substance abuse disorders or mental health issues. For example, the trafficker may identify someone who is experiencing homelessness and give them a place to live. After a period of time the trafficker will then tell the person they need to “earn their keep.”
Legally, a commercial sex act by someone under the age of 18 is automatically considered trafficking even without coercion.
Who is at risk for human trafficking?
Those most affected by human trafficking include women, girls, those who are female-identifying, people of color and members of the LGBTQIA+ community.
Those with adverse childhood experiences (ACE’s) are more vulnerable to human trafficking. These include psychological trauma, family instability or physical, emotional, or sexual abuse.
Victims come from every state in America and the most common age of those who are trafficked is 14-16, according to The Polaris Project.
According to the North Carolina Department of Administration, North Carolina is one of the top 10 states affected by human trafficking due to:
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Major interstate highways
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Large military population surrounded by sexually oriented businesses
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Agricultural areas with high demand for cheap labor
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Increasing number of gangs
Who are the traffickers?
According to the US State Department, for the year 2022 (the last year for which we have data), those who were charged with human trafficking were:
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91% male
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58% white
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20% black
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18% Hispanic
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95% US citizens
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71% had a prior conviction
Human traffickers take many forms. For example, a young girl with family instability may meet an older, romantic boy who sweeps them off their feet. After a period the “boyfriend” will ask the girl to engage in sexual activity so they can make money to run away together.
Sadly, human traffickers can be someone in the victim’s family. Perhaps the mother is already engaged in sex work and then persuades the daughter to join in to increase their money.
Increasingly, those posing as “modeling agents” trawl for victims online through social media.
How to Identify Human Trafficking
Once the real indicators of human trafficking are learned, you may see someone who you fear is being trafficked. This is the time to call the National Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888. You may notice:
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A quickly escalating romantic relationship
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A much older boyfriend
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Always being accompanied by someone else
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Physical signs such as bruising and burns
Again, call the National Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 or your local police.
How Else can I Help?
Since human traffickers exploit the vulnerable, donating to or volunteering for organizations in your community that aid those experiencing homelessness, food insecurity, physical abuse or emotional trauma will ultimately help prevent human trafficking.
Here at Designed For Joy we receive referrals from many nonprofit organizations in downtown Raleigh who are helping these vulnerable populations. We then employ these women in our programs, giving them access to social workers who can help with any of the issues they are facing.
Our staff pours out love, compassion and acceptance upon those we serve thus enabling them to once again trust their community and regain their confidence. By modeling and teaching good business practices as well as referring them to our partners, we aid our women in finding permanent employment and a new path in life.